"There was a lot of screaming then running," said Isabella Cruz, a East New York of who witnessed the madness firsthand. "It sounded like a huge fight...The lady who was helping me with my ticket had to leave me and head over the area where people were screaming."

Coleman said the authority also sent in staffers to help with customer assistance, and the situation was resolved within an hour.

Delta did not issue a formal statement, but airline officials said that the incident started when passengers traveling to Haiti found out their flight was canceled. The airline said it scheduled them on a new flight for Wednesday and the crowd got rowdy after learning they would not fly out today.

Many travelers grounded during the weekend's storm were forced to extend their stay in New York, adding to the business of an already packed travel week.